- Extremely creative playmaker: superb vision & crisp passing
- Slick puckhandling skills that can outright embarass players one-on-one
- Uses his size well to protect the puck and battles hard in the corners; not overly physical though
- Good, but not great top end speed
- Motivated, strong work ethic

Weaknesses

- Footwork needs improving: somewhat slow off the mark, not incredibly agile
- Creativity gets the best of him: at times too many turnovers
- Lacks the shot to become a true well-rounded scoring threat
- Defense still an issue

Future Outlook:

Upside Projection: First-line Winger, Top 5 pick
Timeframe: 2-4 years

Voracek is a player many consider to be this year's "safe" pick; at the very least you're getting a top six forward. If he grows into his frame, improves his skating, and continues to work on his shot he could develop into a bonafide first line winger.

Jakub has still got some work to do and is likely 2-4 years away. He's shown a tremendous amount of progress since the start of the new year as his overall involvement in the play has increased. He's toned the flashiness down, but is still contributing at a steady pace - this is the sign of maturity and an encouraging one at that.

HFNYR Insider:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edge

Voracek is perhaps the best "talent" in the 2007 draft. He's passing skills are second to none, his vision and playmaking are already good enough for the NHL despite the fact that he won't yet be 18 till just before training camp.

Jakub has the natural ability to think one or even two steps ahead of the play and when combined with his elite puckhandling ability he transforms into a dangerous game changing player. There are times when it is truly a treat to watch him in action, everything he does with the puck is incredibly smooth and often leaves opposing players to dance around him in a desperate and often futile attempt at stopping him.

However that same natural ability can often lead Voracek into the danger zone when he tries to get a little too pretty and he coughs up the puck. In many ways he resembles a young Alexei Kovalev on the ice, capable of single handidly taking over a game at times and also capable of trying to do too much at other times. However this seems to have more to do with youth and learning to channel abilities than it does to being selfish or unwilling to learn.

Jakub still has some growing to do physcially and as a player. While he certainly has the playmaking ability and vision to play pro hockey next season, it's the complimentary areas that will need to progress in order to provide a smooth transition.

For starters Jakub will need to get physically stronger both in his upper and lower bodies. Upper body strength will be essential to battling stronger, more talented defenseman and improving strength in his lower body to provide greater balance and improved first step quickness.

Voracek is playmaker first and everything else second. He's not going to be huge NHL goal scorer and he's never going to win a Selke, but both of these areas leave large room for impovement. Defense especially is an area that simply must improve as he continues to mature. While it's a fine line between harming a young talent's offensive ability and trying to teach them to play a responsible game, the fact remains that defense is simply not acceptable at present time.

Ultimately Voracek is simply too talented of a player to slip out of the top 5 in the upcoming draft. Like a lot of the 2007 talents, he's going to need time and patience to put the pieces together but the payoff potential is huge. He has the ability and drive to be a very successful first or second line NHL player and could improve his goalscoring numbers with creative linemates.